Metrorail announced on Tuesday that trains between Cape Town and Chris Hani/Kapteinsklip have been suspended temporarily due to vandlism and commuters have been advised to find their own alternative transport.
Metrorail spokesperson, Riana Scott says: “Investigations revealed that 11kv cable providing power to the substation in the central area had been vandalised. The City of Cape Town confirmed that its substation which provides an alternative electrical feed to Metrorail is also without power since [Monday] morning.”
Scott says Metrorail’s Electrical teams are liaising and working with their municipal counterparts to establish the root cause of the power failure.
“Chris Hani/Kapteinsklip commuters are advised to make alternative transport arrangements to and from Cape Town until the service is restored. Metrorail management would like to thank commuters and employers for their patience and understanding. The Sarepta – Bellville service is unaffected and operating as normal,” Scott says.
📢 CentralLineCT #ServiceAdvisory
Train service on the Chris Hani and Kapteinsklip line is temporarily suspended pic.twitter.com/osP9KzcbNH
— Metrorail W/Cape (@CapeTownTrains) October 29, 2019
Scott says cable skelms continue to cripple train services despite ‘a string of arrests and convictions’.
“Metrorail condemns these acts of vandalism in the strongest possible terms. Despite a string of arrests and convictions, thieves continue to cripple train services by brazenly stripping critical infrastructure and inconveniencing thousands of commuters through their criminal deeds.
“Communities and commuters are encouraged to report any suspicious activity near stations and railway lines immediately to authorities,” Scott says.